The rotary cutter bar of many rotary mower conditioners are contained within a housing which includes a door comprising a rectangular panel which is disposed generally horizontally when closed, and a curtain coupled in depending relationship to a forward edge of the panel so as to extend vertically across the front of the machine. The curtain is pushed back by the standing crop, as the mower-conditioner advances, to allow the crop to be cut. The curtain provides shielding for the operator and bystanders from foreign objects which are engaged and propelled by the rotating cutting discs. The curtain and door assembly is typically hinged at the top of the housing so as permit the curtain and door assembly to be raised to allow better access for service of the cutter bar area of the machine. In some cases, this door and curtain assembly can be damaged by accidentally leaving the door open and effecting an operation which results in the tongue sweeping into the zone occupied by the open access door.
Some designs address the above-noted problem by designing the door such that by unhooking one end of the door support, the operator may pivot the door out about a vertical axis and then lay the door on the ground. This approach is used by the Vermeer Mfg. Co. on their Model 620 Mower-Conditioner and has the drawback that, once the servicing of the cutter bar is complete, the operator must pick the door up, pivot the door back into place and then fasten the door in place.
Other designs allow the tongue to pass over the door by mounting the tongue to the carrier frame at a height which results in the tongue structure being located higher than the opened door. This approach is used by Deere & Company on the JD 946 and 956 Center Pivot Mower-Conditioners. The problem with this approach is that the high location of the tongue introduces higher forces into the carrier frame which must require heavier structure to compensate for them.